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Toreador Antediluvian
, The Antediluvians, p. 130 |clan = Toreador |generation = 3rd |sire = Enoch (presumed) |childer = *Minos *Apollo * Tammuz VTM: Clanbook: Toreador Revised, p. 15 * Amarantha * Beshter/Michael * Iontius * Minotaur VTM: Clanbook: Toreador Revised, p. 17 |allegiance = The Blossom }} The Toreador Antediluvian, commonly called Arikel or sometimes named as Ishtar, is a powerful Cainite who was Embraced before the Deluge and who founded the Toreador clan in the Second City. Biography Arikel is a progeny of Caine's childe Enoch; she is the oldest Antediluvian and is Malkav's twin. She served as Caine's "Blossom", in the First City, where she sculpted many statues in that hold.VTM: Dirty Secrets of the Black Hand, p. 93 Alternately known as Arikel, the sculptor, or Ishtar, the bull-dancer, this Antediluvian founded Clan Toreador, the Clan of the Blossom,VTM: Clanbook: Toreador Revised, p. 15, 16 today known as the Clan of the Rose. The Prodigals told of a story in which Arikel and Troile were troubled by the way the Cainites of the First City behaved, and turned to Saulot for aid. The Healer stated that only empathy would help them retain a link to humanity and so, both Troile and Arikel went to work on a project of art that spanned a hundred and one years, before they brought it before Caine. The work inspired exactly those emotions within the audience that they had inspired in the mortal population. Caine was deeply touched by it and called Arikel and Troile to his side, forgiving them past trespasses. These prodigals hold this as the origin of the Road of Humanity.DAV: Road of Humanity (book), p.15-16 Toreador is generally held to be beautiful, fickle, vain and carrying on affairs with the other Antediluvians. She may be especially despised by Absimiliard, who both lusted for her and sought (and still seeks) to destroy her. Some modern Toreador scholars claim that their clan's Antediluvian was killed in the time of Enoch by the plotting of Abismiliard and Set, progenitors of the Nosferatu and Setite clans, who supposedly cut out and ate her heart. Yet, there are records that indicate that she had not experienced Final Death, and had awakened from Torpor around 260 BC, acting as an advisor to Prince Alchias. As Ishtar According to the Toreador, as told by Katherine of Montpelier, her clan's Antediluvian was known as Ishtar. She was a mortal who lived in the City of Ubar. Perhaps it was her beauty that led to her Embrace. Thus, she became Antediluvian of the Clan of the Blossom by the time Ubar was renamed the City of Enoch. After the Deluge destroyed Enoch, the Antediluvians rebelled against their sires. — Caine's childer, the Second Generation — who they are said to have killed. Thus, Caine returned to the Antediluvians, who at the time resided in the Second City, to curse them. According to the Toreador, Caine cursed all the Antediluvians, except for Ishtar, whom he believed was innocent in the matter.VTM: Clanbook: Toreador Revised, p. 15 Fearing possible vengeance from her angry siblings, Ishtar left the Second City to reside in Sumer. The people worshiped her beauty and made her their goddess. She also came to have a lover whom she embraced, that was known as Tammuz. Her happiness was not meant to last, and the beastial Ennoia (founder of the Gangrel clan), was the first to find her. According to this version of the vampiric mythology, the Gangrel Antediluvian apparently was a male who answered by the name of "Enkidu" (although this was actually the name of one of Ennoia's brood), and that he possessed the Tablet of Destiny until Ishtar tried to take the item from him. Outraged by this action, Ennoia set out to kill the Toreador Antediluvian. As Ennoia tracked Ishtar to Sumer, she embraced Ereshkigal to help her in the attack on her sibling. When the Gangrel came to confront Ishtar, Tammuz interceded, and ultimately gave his unlife so that Ishtar could flee. She then sought aid from the king of Sumer, Gilgamesh. However, he had already been embraced by Ennoia. The Toreador fled from the pair, but not before unleashing upon them some great monster known as the Bull of Heaven, while she escaped to Crete.VTM: Clanbook: Toreador Revised, p. 15, 16 In Crete, Ishtar resided with King Minos, who desired and demanded her gift. Initially, she refused, but then compromised to embrace his son. Unworthy of the embrace, the son fell into the clutches of the Beast. His erratic behavior had him imprisoned by his father Minos, in what was an underground maze. There, he was fed "tribute", such as maidens, to squelch his hunger. Over time, the son became the fabled "Minotaur" who was killed by a mortal known as Theseus.VTM: Clanbook: Toreador Revised, p. 17 As the Antediluvian leaves Katherine's history at this point, it may be possible that Ishtar wasn't known as "Arikel" until some time after, possibly when she resided in Greece. Note that some of Katherine's male contemporaries in the Dark Ages disagreed with the history she related; these other Toreador claimed that the Antediluvian was only known as Arikel, never as Ishtar, and that the Antediluvian was a male sculptor and not a female bull-dancer. Final Nights The Toreador Antediluvian is currently thought to be awakened, residing once more in Greece. References * VTM: Clanbook: Toreador Revised, p. 15, 16 See Also: * , p. 13, 18 * Category:Toreador (VTM) Category:Antediluvian Category:Third Generation vampires Category:Vampire: The Masquerade character